Jack Dorsey Biography | Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey

Hello everyone! We all know that Social media platforms have become an integral part of our life – be it Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc. From individuals, entrepreneurs, and celebrities to startups, small businesses, and big enterprises, social media is a useful tool for all of us. Today, we are going to discuss one of the creators of such platform – Twitter. I guess you all are familiar with this term. Who isn’t? It is a social media platform famous for its eye-catching controversies between many famous personalities. But that’s not our concern right now. Today, we will be discussing the former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. Our today’s article is all about Jack Dorsey Biography. So, without further ado, let’s begin.

Introduction

Jack Dorsey, an American businessman and philanthropist well-known for developing Twitter and also for being the founder and CEO of Square, which is a monetary payments company. Time Magazine, recognised Dorsey as one of the 100 most influential people. In this article, we will be discussing Jack Dorsey biography and learn more about his journey of becoming one of the most successful tech entrepreneurs.

Early Life of Jack Dorsey

Born in St. Louis (Missouri, USA) on November 19, 1976. Doesey is of Irish, English, and Italian descent. As he was interested in computers and communication technology, he began programming while he was still a student at Bishop DuBourg High School. From the beginning he was fascinated by the technology that required real-time communication, like one for coordinating taxi drivers, delivery vans, and other vehicles.

He enrolled in the Missouri University of Science and Technology. But later transferred to New York University. Just like many tech entrepreneurs such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg, he dropped out before receiving his degree.

In 2000, he initiated a company that dispatched taxis, couriers, and emergency services from the internet. At this time, his other ideas included networks of medical devices and a ‘frictionless service market’.

The Career of Jack Dorsey

Story behind Twitter

In the July of 2000, Dorsey came up with the idea of a web-based short message communication service, which would combine the broad reach of dispatch software with the ease of instant messaging. He approached Biz Stone, who at the time was interested in text messaging. Dorsey and Biz Stone (Executive of Odeo) decided that SMS text suited the status-message idea, and built a prototype of Twitter in about two weeks. The idea attracted many users and also got investment from Evan Williams, who was the co-founder of that firm in 2005.

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey announced that an improved version of the verification system would be coming to Twitter. Originally named ‘twttr’, Twitter Inc. was set up in 2006 and has now become one of the most widely used social networking websites all over the world. Jack Dorsey was the first person to post a tweet that said “just setting up my twttr.”

Jack Dorsey was selected as the chief executive officer of the company. In 2008, Evan Williams took over as the CEO, and Dorsey became chairman of the board.

Problems faced by Twitter

In its early days, the Twitter site suffered from frequent service outages and was not taken seriously by users. But as CEOs and celebrities began tweeting, Twitter was no longer a joke. Twitter became a powerful platform for U.S. Presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain in 2008, as a platform for updating their supporters while on the campaign trail.

Twitter rose to international prominence after the June 2009 presidential elections in Iran, when thousands of opposition supporters protested, the claimed victory of incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. As the government blocked text messaging and foreign news coverage, Iranian Twitter users flooded Twitter with live updates. As ordered by the US State Department Twitter delayed its scheduled maintenance so that protestors could continue tweeting.

Dorsey returned to Twitter as executive chairman after Dick Costolo became the CEO, on March 28, 2011. On June 10, 2015, Costolo resigned as the CEO. And, Dorsey became the permanent CEO on October 5, 2015.

On October 23, 2019, Twitter’s stock price fell by nearly 24 per cent due to claimed ad targeting problems and the banning of all political ads. As of November 22, 2019, Jack Dorsey announced that Twitter would ban all political advertising.

On February 29, 2020, it was announced that activist hedge fund Elliott Management led by billionaire Paul Singer was looking to oust Dorsey from Twitter and nominate four directors to Twitter’s board. But Jack Dorsey received support from entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, thus remaining CEO.

Establishment of Square

In May 2010, Jack Dorsey and co-founder Jim McKelvey developed a business platform that accepts debit and credit card payments on a mobile device called Square. This device attaches to the device via a headphone jack, and as a mini card reader allows the user to swipe their card, choose an amount to transfer, and sign their name for confirmation. Square is also used for sending paperless receipts via text message or email and is available as a free app.

In September 2012, Business Square Inc. was valued at US$3.2 billion. On October 14, 2015, Square filed for an initial public offering to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. And at that time, Dorsey owned 24.4 per cent of the company.

Jack Dorsey Biography, is incomplete without talking about his philanthropic contributions.

Philanthropy

1. Dorsey contributed to the #TeamTrees climate change initiative in October 2019 by funding the planting of 150,000 trees.

2. In April 2020, Dorsey donated $1 billion worth of equity in Square to support coronavirus relief efforts around the world.

Well, Jack Dorsey Biography is at its end, now have a look at his achievements.

Awards and Recognition

1. In 2008, Jack Dorsey was named as one of the top 35 innovators in the world under the age of 35 by the MIT Technology Review TR35.

2. The Wall Street Journal gave him the “Innovator of the Year Award” for technology in 2012.

3. At the 5th Annual Crunchies Awards in 2012, hosted by TechCrunch, Dorsey was named Founder of the Year.

To End With…

As in Jack Dorsey biography he has proved his entrepreneurship skills through his wisely chosen business ventures. His guiding principles for running his businesses are simplicity, craftsmanship, and constraint. His love for technology made him one of the richest people in the world. As of January 2021, his net worth is $15 billion. Even though, Twitter has already brought a huge change in the way people communicate, on November 29, 2021, Dorsey resigned from the position of CEO effective immediately and now remains the CEO of Square Inc. We can all agree that for Jack Dorsey, this is not the end.

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